Argus' Eye Picture

The peacock is mentioned in Greek mythology. It was the bird of Hera, queen of the Gods. One myth told of Argus, Hera's hundred eyed giant whose job it was to spy on Zeus and discover his trysting places. When he discovered Zeus with the maiden Io, Zeus changed Io into a cow to escape Hera's wrath. Hera saw through the disguise and requested the cow as a gift, and Zeus could not refuse her. She entrusted Argus to watch Io day and night so she could not be changed back to her true form. Zeus then sent Hermes, messenger of the gods and god of thieves and trickery, to recover Io. Knowing that he could not escape detection from Argus' 100 eyes, Hermes began to play sleepy tunes on his flute and one by one Argus' eyes closed and he fell asleep. Hermes then cut off his head. When Hera found Argus, she removed his one-hundred eyes and placed them on the tail of her favorite bird, the peacock.